In Ghana, the escalating crisis of illegal small-scale gold mining, known locally as “galamsey,” has prompted urgent calls for action from all corners of society.
The issue has become a significant challenge for successive governments, with many Ghanaians concerned about its debilitating impact.
The Ghana Water Company has highlighted how the practice increases the cost of treating water.
Both the ruling New Patriotic Party (NPP) and the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC) have spoken about their ambitious plans to tackle this issue, each vowing to protect the environment and ensure sustainable development.
The Director of Communications for the New Patriotic Party (NPP), Richard Ahiagbah, has accused the former National Democratic Congress (NDC) government of failing to nip illegal mining activities in the bud leaving the menace to get out of control.
According to him the failure to some extent thwarted the efforts of the current NPP government in dealing with the illegal mining, popularly known as galamsey.
He noted that although the measures employed have been “largely successful”, key plans had to be implemented to contain illegal mining before other substantial measures related to regulation could be addressed.
As a result, President Akufo-Addo placed a total ban on illegal mining in 2017, Mr Ahigabah said.
He added “But by the time he was engaging this subject, it was out of control. So the ban was to deal with the extent to which this issue has gone out of control to try to step it down.”
“Because somebody who was supposed to deal with the issue at its batting level failed to do that, you are trying to contain it. So the challenges to deal with an issue at a point where it’s out of control versus when it is batting are two different challenges.
“It’s fundamental in having this conversation to point to the fact that where it was easy to deal with this thing, the NDC failed.”
Richard Ahiagbah said if former President John Mahama had been clear in his commitment to deal with the menace, the situation would not be as bad as it is.
He indicated that government so far has been able to contain the situation which has contributed to the successes in the fight against illegal mining.
“When you get to a point where the thing is out of control, your remedial policy and whatever measures that you want to put in place, such as military efforts, are a bit more high level and a bit more chaotic to deal with. The effort put in by this government has not entirely failed.”
“If you go into the small-scale mining sector, the Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources, working closely with the mineral commission and allied agencies, have managed to now regularise small-scale mining through the community mining schemes, which is allowing Ghanaians to leverage the resource that’s given.”
The NPP Director of Communications assured that the party’s flagbearer Dr Mahamudu Bawumia would have even more long-term propositions that will ensure illegal mining is dealt with sustainably.
“One thing that will feature in our manifesto would be what we are doing with the Alternative Livelihood Employment Program to ensure that we are recouping or finding a pathway for people who depended on galamsey for livelihood.”
“With this measure, we can say that we will then be able to pull more people away from galamsey and give them alternative livelihood,” Mr Ahiagbah said.
Flagbearer of the NDC, Mr John Dramani Mahama, has on the other hand emphasised the need for technological innovation to enhance the monitoring of the small-scale mining sector and minimise its environmental impact.
The Former President last month revealed plans to employ Artificial Intelligence (AI) in combating illegal small-scale mining at the ‘3rd Annual Transformational Dialogue on Small-Scale Mining’ organised by the University of Energy and Natural Resources in Sunyani.
“We will introduce and encourage technological innovation to improve capacity for coordinated monitoring of the small-scale mining sector and reduce environmental impact,” he said.
He proposed the utilisation of AI to identify small-scale mining and galamsey activities, monitor excavators, and establish geo-fences around concessions to prevent mining operations in unauthorized areas, including water bodies.
The Special Aide to NDC flagbearer John Mahama, Joyce Bawa-Mogtari explains that despite the government’s failure to use drones to fight the menace, AI can be more effective.
“You can sit in your room even and be able to tell that the military that you’ve sent, instead of the ones that we saw in videos wearing mufti and going out there to engage in these activities themselves, are working.”
“These are technologies that will be used to actually expose some of these acts.”
According to her, due to the importance of the subject matter, a lot of support could be obtained for free from various stakeholders in the mining industry.
She added that if the party wins the upcoming election, it will invest $500 million to combat the illegal mining menace.
She said, “John Mahama actually said in his speech at the University of Mines and Energy, for example, that at least $500 million will be deployed first into research to get data and of course using modern technology.”
“Everybody’s interested in this conversation…there is something that modern technology does for us. It makes things much easier and presents a better photograph and actually satisfies something that humans cannot do,” she explained
As Ghana approaches its next election cycle, the fight against galamsey stands as a crucial issue that could determine the country’s environmental and economic future. Both the NPP and NDC have laid out ambitious plans to tackle this menace, each offering a unique blend of enforcement, legal reforms, and sustainable development initiatives. While the promises are bold, the success of these plans will ultimately hinge on their execution and the unwavering commitment of whichever party comes to power.
